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Minnesota State Fair attendance breaks 2 million mark

Sani, left, and Rabi Baba, with their baby, Sa’adat spend their first day ever at the Minnesota State Fair in Falcon Heights on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. “It’s amazing! Lots of people, lots of food,” said Sani. (Jean Pieri / Pioneer Press)

FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. -- Minnesota State Fair organizers are calling the 2018 Fair “the best ever” after final Labor Day figures broke the overall attendance record with 2,046,533 passing through the gates.

The previous record of 1,997,320 was set last year. This year’s Fair had five daily attendance record days with Saturday, Sept. 1, setting an all-time single-day attendance record at 270,426.

Over its 12-day span, the Fair put on 900 free music performances, brought in nearly 15,000 animals, saw 217 baby animals born, and drew more than 36,000 entries in the agricultural and creative competitions that rivaled each other for $1.5 million in prize money.